INDOOR BEACH

My husband Steven and son Alex came into the house knocking the snow off their shoes and unzipping their coat. A blast of cold air followed them in.

“We cleared the driveway and the sidewalk and steps are sanded.” Steven said as he hung his coat on the closet door.

“Thanks you two.” I said as I pulled the broom out of the closet.

We’d been hit with another snowstorm and Steven and Alex had spent the last few hours clearing it away.

“I made some chicken soup if you’re interested. It’s on the stove, ready to go.” I began sweeping the sand from our front foyer. “All the sand you’re spreading over the sidewalk seems to be making it’s way in the house.”

“Well, at least you don’t have to worry about slipping on the ice.” Steven reminded me.

“True.” I nodded as I already had a pile swept together. “I’ll just pretend it’s like having a little bit of summer right here in the house.” I laughed.

Alex hung up his coat and pointed to some specks of sand near the foyer table. “You missed a spot.”

I saw where he was pointing to and swept the sand into the pile I already had. I grabbed the dust pan, swept the sand into it, took it over to the kitchen garbage and dumping it in. “I don’t want to even think about all the sand I have in my car from the sidewalks being sanded.”

I went to put the broom and dust pan back in the closet.

“I thought the sand in the car was from this summer?” Alex said.

“What? No.” I said. “I had the car cleaned from all the summer sand.” I went back into the kitchen and got out some bowls. “It definitely has winter sand in it now.” I handed him a bowl.

“There’s really no difference between winter sand and summer sand is there?” Alex laughed as he took the ladle and got some soup. “Isn’t sand just sand?”

“Oh, I beg to differ.” I said as I took the ladle from him. “Summer sand is like a vacation. It’s warm and soft and makes me smile.” I handed a bowl of soup to Steven. “There’s some bread in the cabinet if you want some.”

“Just the soup is fine.” Steven took the bowl and headed for the dining room table. “I could use something to warm me up.”

Alex was standing next to me waiting for me to finish getting my soup. “And winter sand?”

“Winter sand comes out of a spackle bucket that’s by the front door. It’s something your Dad spreads around so we don’t fall and crack our heads open.”

Alex laughed again. “Well, when you put it that way!” We went in to the dining room and sat down.

I looked out the window at all the snow. “Have I mentioned how much I hate winter?” I sighed.

“Every day.” Steven laughed.

“If you want I can get another scoop of sand from the spackle bucket and spread it over the floor again.” Alex offered.

I looked over at him with a confused look on my face.

“Didn’t you just finish saying you were pretending that the sand you just swept up reminded you of the beach?”

“I’m done pretending.” I said as I stirred my soup and looked out the window again. “I’m never going to like the winter sand.”

OUCH, MY BACK

I was struggling to get my bags out of the back seat of my car when my son Alex opened our front door and called out, “Are you okay?”

“I threw my back out.” I called back having a hard time reaching my purse that was on the floor of the car.

“Hold on!” He called, turning around to put on his shoes. “I’ll come help you.”

I tried to take a deep breath but when I did my lower back began to spasm. I leaned against the car waiting for Alex.

He jogged out of the house. “How’d you do that?” He asked as he took the bags out of my hands.

“I stood up.” I said as I gingerly walked up the front steps. Walking into the house I didn’t even bother to take off my coat as I tried to lower myself onto the couch.

“I don’t understand.” Alex said dropping my bags on the chair. “What do you mean, you stood up?”

“Exactly that.” I’d finally gotten myself sitting on the couch, closing my eyes, wishing my pain would go away. “I was sitting on my chair at work and when I stood up…” I tried to take in a deep breath but the spasm in my back got worse. I pointed to my back. “This happened.”

“Let me get the heating pad for you.” He said as he went to the linen closet.

“That’s a great idea.” I said trying to find a comfortable position.

“What’s a great idea?” My husband Steven asked as he came into the room.

“Mom threw her back out.” Alex called from the linen closet as he looked for the heating pad. “Found it!” He called as he came back in the living room.

Steven sat down next to me. “Do you want me to give you a back massage?”

“I’m not sure.” I said as I tried to adjust how I was sitting to ease the pain.

“Why don’t you try some heat before Dad works on your back?” Alex suggested as he plugged in the heating pad.

“That’s a good idea.” Steven agreed. “But I don’t think the heating pad is going to work with your coat still on.”

“You’re right.” I began to unzip my coat but another spasm struck. “For the love of…” I leaned back against the cushion shaking my head. “I can’t believe I’m thinking about my Mom right now.”

Steven looked confused. “Why?”

“I just remember her walking around the house saying ‘My back is slaying me!’ all the time as she held her back and headed for the couch.” I looked over at Steven. “Who uses the word slaying?” Steven shook his head.

“I used to think she was just saying that to get out of making dinner.” I went to try again to get out of my coat. When I finally did Alex put the heating pad behind me.

“Well, why don’t you use the heating pad for a little while and then I’ll give you a nice massage.”

“That sounds great.” I leaned back against the heat. “Thanks you two.”

“No problem.” Steven said as he got up and went into the kitchen. “I’ll grab the menus from the drawer. We’ll order out.” He called.

“That would be perfect.” I called back.

I looked over at Alex. “I’m not doing this to get out of cooking you know.”

Alex looked confused. “I never said you did.”

I sighed. “I know. I guess I’m just feeling guilty about thinking that’s what my Mom was doing.”

Alex kissed the top of my head. “Don’t worry. We believe you.”

TENTATIVE BOOK DROP

It was a cold, rainy Saturday and I had a lot of errands to run. As I was heading to the front door I called out to my son Alex “You almost ready?”

“Be there in a second!” He called back.

I checked my watch, feeling a little bit impatient as I thought of the most efficient way to get all the errands done.

Alex came out of his room. “How long do you think we’re going to be out?” He asked as he got his coat on.

“I’ve got about a half a dozen stops to make before we can stop and pick up lunch.” I checked my watch again. “I’m going to say a little over an hour?” I shrugged my shoulders letting him know it was definitely a rough guess.

Alex laughed. “Let’s see how close that estimate is.”

Driving to our first stop, not far from the house, I pulled into the back parking lot of a church. Putting the car in park I left the car running and putting the windshield wipers down to intermittent.

“Okay, this is our first stop.” Getting out of the car I went and opened the back door, grabbing a bag of clothes ready to be donated. “I also have a bag of books I’ve read.” I looked over at him and smiled. “Luckily the donation bin for that is right over there in the same parking lot!”

“Good.” Alex reached over and adjusted the heat. “Two errands done in one stop.”

“Exactly!”

I jogged over to the bin and tossed the bag of clothes in. Getting back to the car I reached in for the bag of books but the bag ripped and the books spilled onto the floor.

“Darn it!” I cried as I began picking up a few of the books. “Now I’m going to have to make a few trips.”

Alex opened his door. “Do you want some help?”

“No. I’m good. No use both of us getting wet.” I took the first armload of books to the bin and began dropping them in a few at a time. But then stopped when I saw the cover of one of the books and realized I didn’t want to donate it just yet.

Clutching it to my chest, so it didn’t get wet, I hurried back to the car and tossed the book on the back seat.

“What’s up with that?” Alex asked pointing to the book and laughing.

“I’m just not ready to get rid of that one yet.” I explained as I began picking up more of the books that were on the floor. But now that I was questioning not donating one book I was beginning to rethink some of the other ones.

“You know this one was pretty good, too.” I held up another book. “I met the author.”

Alex leaned his head back against the headrest and sighed. “Why don’t we skip this errand and move on to the next one?”

“I’ll just be another minute.” I said but now I was standing in the rain wondering if I wanted to get rid of any of them.

I looked back over my shoulder at the book bin.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Alex cried when he saw where I was looking.

“What?”

“We’re not breaking into a book bin to get your books back!”

“I wasn’t going to do that.” I said leaving the book still on the floor and closing the back door. Climbing back into the driver’s seat. “I wasn’t!” I cried again.

Alex laughed and shook his head. “We’re in the back of a church and you’re thinking of breaking into a donation box.”

“It was a fleeting thought. That’s all.” I said as I put the car in drive.

Alex laughed again. “You’re lucky I was here to stop you.”

“What can I say?” I said slowly driving past the book box. “I love my books.”

COMFORT SOUP

My husband Steven came into the living room where I was still in my pajamas, curled up in a chair reading a book.

“What do you want to do for dinner tonight?” He asked.

I looked over at the clock. Having gotten lost in my reading I didn’t realize it was dinnertime. “Wait.” I was confused. “It’s only three o’clock.”

“I know but we’re on our own tonight for dinner and I thought maybe you’d like to order out.”

I threw my book on the coffee table and jumped up. “Wonton soup! Wonton soup!” I cried.

Steven smiled. “I had a feeling you were going to say that. Let’s get dressed and pick it up now and we can eat it whenever we want.”

“I’m in!” I cried as I went to our bedroom to get dressed.

Steven and I quickly got dressed and as we were passing our son Alex’s door, I knocked and called out. “We’re going to get wonton soup! Do you want anything?”

“No thanks.” I heard him say through the door. “I’m going out to dinner.”

“Okay. We’ll be back soon.” I hurried to the front hall closet and grabbed my coat.

We were always looking for a good Chinese restaurant and when Steven found this place I fell in love with their wonton soup. It was my new winter I-don’t-feel-like-cooking comfort soup. It was about fifteen minutes from our house but I considered that definitely worth it.

“Getting home before dark is a giant plus.” I said as I climbed in the car.

“Exactly what I was thinking.” Steven said as he got behind the wheel.

I rubbed my gloved hands together. “How many quarts do you think we should get?” I asked as Steven backed out of the driveway.

“Well, I’m getting a quart for myself.”

“Two quarts it is!” I reached over to turn up the heat.

Steven reached over and patted me on the leg. “Aren’t I the best husband for thinking about this for dinner?”

I looked over at him and smiled. “You are the best husband for thinking about this for dinner.” I agreed then cleared my throat. “And I’m the best wife for having cheap cravings, like wonton soup, instead of a wife who’d crave steak and tails.”

“That’s true.” Steven started to laugh. “I do consider myself lucky that you’ve always been a cheap date.”

“You’re welcome.”

We pulled into the parking lot. Steven left the car running and opened his door.

“Oh, don’t forget the crispy chow mein noodles.” I reminded him.

“Don’t worry, it comes with the soup.” He said as he closed the door.

I watched him walk across the parking lot to the restaurant, holding the brim of his hat against the wind.

When he went inside I leaned over to turn on some music. “You know, it’s simple things like this that makes me happy.” I said to myself.

I looked back at the restaurant. “Now let’s just hope he remembers to grab a few fortune cookies on his way out.”

PEACE AND HARMONY

I was sitting on the couch looking out at the snow covered ground when my son Alex came into the room.

“What are you up to today?” he asked as he sat down next to me.

“I’m hoping to have a nice calm indoor day today.” I said as I pointed out the window. “I’m not a big lover of snow.”

I saw him crinkle his nose. “What’s that smell?”

“Oh…” I held up my hand to show him my wrist that had a band-aid on it. “It’s Vicks VapoRub”

“Why?”

“I saw a TikTok video that said if you put a small amount on your wrist and cover it with a band-aid it’s suppose to help manage stress, reduce my anxiety, and have an overall calming effect on my body.”

“Is it working?” Alex asked with a laugh.

“I’m not sure. I just put it on a few minutes ago.” I reached over to the coffee table and picked up the book I’d been reading while Alex scrolled through his phone.

After reading for a few minutes I began to sniffle and my eyes started to water.

“Are you getting sick?” Alex asked, looking up from his phone.

I put my book down and wiped a tear from the corner of my eye. “My eyes are burning.” I explained. “I wonder if the fumes from the Vicks is what’s bothering my eyes?”

“Well, that’s not good.”

“Oh man!” I pulled the band-aid off. “I’ve got to get this stuff off of me.” I went to my bathroom to wash it off.

I came back to the living room with a damp towel, pressing it against my eyes. “That was a complete fail.” I said sitting back down on the couch.

Alex shook his head. “Imagine that.”

“What?”

“Something you saw on the internet that doesn’t really work!”

“Hey,” I said with a laugh. “It was worth a try.”

“Was it really?”

“No. It wasn’t.” I admitted as I got up and went to the kitchen, grabbing a tissue off the counter-top to blow my nose.

“Hey, I’m going to make some chai tea.” I called out to Alex as I grabbed the kettle to fill it with water. “Do you want some?”

“No thanks.” He called back.

I came back into the living room waiting for the water to boil.

“Is that your next experiment for calming?” He asked. “Chai tea?”

“Oh, this one isn’t an experiment.” I leaned back against the cushions and put my feet up on the coffee table. “I already know it works.”

KEEPING THE LIGHTS ON

“Oh, come on!” I cried as I sat down on the couch after cleaning the kitchen and saw another section of our Christmas tree lights had gone out. “What’s the deal with you?”

“Who are you talking to?” My son Alex asked as he walked into the living room.

I pointed to our tree. “Another section went out! I’m really starting to hate this…” I held my hands up to do air quotes for “pre-lit tree!”

“Well, it made it past Christmas.” Alex tried to reason with me.

“No, it didn’t!” I said as I got up and went to the hall closet, reaching up on the shelf where several boxes of Christmas tree lights were stacked. “I’m glad I got a few boxes of these at the beginning of the season.” I opened the box, plugged the light into the middle of the tree and began wrapping the new lights around the burnt out sections.

“Can you grab the other end of this?” I asked Alex as I held out the bulk of the lights while trying to weave them around the already hung ornaments.

“Sure.” Alex took them while I, inch by inch, tucked them around the branches.

When we were done I stood back to see if I’d gotten all the right sections. “It’s so ridiculous!” I complained. “This is only the third year for this tree!”

I was shaking my head as I went over to fix the position of some of the lights. “I knew getting a pre-lit tree was a mistake.”

“Hey, I was with you and Dad when you bought this.” Alex sat down on the couch putting his feet up on the coffee table. “Don’t you remember we couldn’t find one that wasn’t pre-lit?”

I sighed as I sat down next to him. “Why is it that they keep making things that, at first, seem like they’re better but instead they turn out to be a cheep version of the original?”

Alex shrugged his shoulders. “Progress?”

I had to laugh. “Progress.” I too put my feet up on the coffee table leaning back against the cushions.

We heard the key in the front unlock and felt a blast of cold air sweep through the room.

“It sure is cold out there!” My husband Steven called from the foyer as he unzipped his coat and put it in the front hall closet. “What are you two up to?” He asked as he came into the living room.

“We’re just sitting here enjoying the tree.” Alex said.

Steven stood next to the couch. “The tree really looks great.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “You know I really didn’t think I’d like this tree, but it seems to be working out great.” He patted my shoulder before heading into the kitchen. “What are we doing for lunch?” He called.

“The crock pot had chicken soup ready for you.” I called back.

Alex leaned over to me. “He doesn’t know that the lights on the tree keep going out?” He whispered.

I shook my head. “He knew about the one strand that went out before Christmas but you jiggled the wire and it came back on.” I looked over my shoulder to see if Steven was still in the kitchen. “After that I’d just fix it before your Dad came home.”

Alex looked confused. “Why didn’t you tell him?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “It’s all part of keeping the Christmas magic alive.”

“What?”

But before I could answer further Steven came back in the room holding a mug of chicken soup, blowing on the surface before taking a sip. “What can I say…” He said as he put the mug on the coffee table and sat down next to me. “It’s another year and another great Christmas.” He leaned forward and looked at Alex who was sitting on the other side of me. “Am I right?”

“You’re right.” Alex agreed.

I turned to Alex and smiled. “That’s why.”

SNOW CHECK

I went to sleep knowing that overnight we were going to be having our first snowfall of the season. The weather forecasters had predicted 2 to 3 inches so I really wasn’t concerned.

When I woke up the next morning and went to my bedroom window to take a peek, I let out a long sigh.

Instead of the predicted 2 to 3 inches, we got triple that. “Oh great.” I grumbled as I grabbed my robe off the foot of our bed and went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

My son Alex was already in the kitchen. “It’s pretty.” He said as he pointed to our backyard.

He wasn’t wrong.

Tying my robe I looked out the kitchen window and could see that all the limbs on the bushes and trees were still covered in snow. I could hear the neighborhood kids already outside playing. Their laughter almost making it hard to still be upset about what the day ahead looked like for me.

Almost.

“I hate shoveling snow.” I said as I opened the cabinet and reached for my tea cup.

My husband Steven came into the kitchen already dressed for the weather. “I’m going out to start up the snowblower.”

“We’ll be out in a minute to help shovel the sidewalks.” I began filling the kettle with water. “Oh, wait a minute!” I cried. “We have lunch plans with Kathy and her daughter Rikki!”

Steven pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll text Rikki and let her know we’ll have to reschedule.”

“Tell her we’ll need a snow check.” I laughed as I put the kettle on the stove. “You know, it’s like a rain check only with snow!”

Steven shook his head. “I got it.”

Several moments later Steven’s phone chirped, “Rikki says that we can just push it back to dinner instead of lunch.” He looked over at me, his eyes wide.

“Ah. That’s so sweet.” I said with a laugh. “She doesn’t think of us as old.”

Alex looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Rikki actually thinks we can dig ourselves out and still want to do something beside lay on the couch for the rest of the day and share a tube of Bengay!” I couldn’t help but laugh. “That really is sweet.”

Steven shook his head and held up his phone. “So what do you want me to text back to her?”

“The truth!” I said dropping a tea bag in my cup. “We’re old, we’ll be doing physical labor for about an hour, maybe two and that’s all we can manage for today.” I began pouring the hot water into my cup. “Oh, and don’t forget to asked for a snow check!” I laughed. “I’m really starting to like that phrase.”

“I’m not saying snow check.” Steven said as he began texting back.

“Ah, you’re no fun.” I laughed. “I’d watch out or you might get a snowball thrown at you while you’re snow blowing!”

“See?” Alex said. “You’re not that old if you’re talking about having a snowball fight.”

FEEDING FAIL

“I had such high hopes.” I said with a sigh as I looked out my kitchen window to our backyard.

My son Alex came up next to me. “What are you talking about?”

I pointed to the split open pumpkin laying at the edge of our woods. “I thought they’d be thrilled to have that as a treat.” I picked up my cup of tea from the counter and took a sip.

“Really?” Alex said with a laugh.

I leaned against the counter top. “I had this whole scene in my head when I put it out there instead of throwing it to the curb.”

“What scene was in your head?” Alex asked as he went over and began fixing his coffee.

“Well, now it’s just going to sound silly if I tell you.” I said taking another sip from my cup.

“Try me.” Alex picked up kettle and walked over to the sink.

“Okay, but you have to promise not to laugh.”

Alex shook his head. “Sorry, but that’s not a promise I can keep.” He began filling the kettle with water.

“Fine.” I sighed. “So, you know that scene in Snow White where she’s in the forest and all the animals are around her?”

Alex looked over at me, his brow furrowed. “Yeah.” He turned off the water and walked over to the stove.

“That’s what I pictured when I put the pumpkin out there.” I looked back out the window. “I thought I’d see birds and squirrels and a few deer surrounding it taking little nibbles.”

Alex nodded his head as he turned on the burner. “That’s what you pictured?”

“I really did!” I took another sip of tea. “I thought that we might even see the fox that’s been around a few times.” I sighed again. “But instead it’s turned into a major feeding fail.”

“Well,” Alex leaned against the counter waiting for the water to boil. “It’s certainly not your first feeding fail.”

“What are you talking about?” I opened the dishwasher to put my cup in.

“What about the peanut butter pine cone a few weeks ago?”

“Oh yeah.” I said as I closed the dishwasher and leaned back against the counter. “I forgot about that.”

“And last summer when you put the suet feeder out and all the fat melted all over the ground?”

“I forgot about that one, too.” I sighed again.

“And what about….”

“Okay! I get it.” I said cutting him off. “Clearly your memory is much better than mine.” I headed to the front hall closet and grabbed my coat. Putting it on I went back in the kitchen and grabbed a garbage bag from the drawer. Shaking it open, I walked over to the back door. “I guess it’s time to admit they don’t want the pumpkin.”

“Sorry it didn’t work out the way you hoped it would.” Alex called after me.

“It’s fine.” I grumbled as I grabbed the container of birdseed that was at the back door. “No more fun treats for you guys!” I called out to the woods. “You’re only getting birdseed from now on!”

FRONT DOOR FIASCO

My son, Alex and I were going to go for a walk when I stopped in the foyer and wondered out loud. “Do you think I’m going to need a coat?”

Alex went to check the outdoor thermometer which was outside the dining room window while I decided it would just be easier to open the front door and step out for a second.

When Alex came back he saw me in the open doorway, swinging my arms above my head.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“Checking to see how cold it is.” I’d stopped swinging my arms and was now moving my head from side to side before coming back in the house and closing the door.

“I mean why were you swinging your arms around over your head?” Alex asked before he went into the living room and look out the front window. “Did any of the neighbors see you?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I was swinging my arms because I thought a bug was trying to get in the house but halfway though I thought maybe it wasn’t a bug after all and I was watching one of my floaters moving around in my eye.” I couldn’t help but laugh. “I guess I did look a little strange, huh?”

“A little strange!” Alex looked out the front window again. “If a neighbor was watching, the only thing they saw was a confused woman standing in the doorway swinging her arms around before stepping back inside and closing the door.”

“Well, when you say it that way…” I walked over to the front hall closet and took out a jacket. “At least I found out I could use a jacket for our walk.”

Alex grabbed his coat and put it on before heading to the back door.

“Where are you going?” I asked.

“I’m not walking out the front door now.”

“Oh, come on!” I laughed. “No one saw me.”

I headed for the front door.

“You don’t know that.” He reminded me.

“Now you’re just being silly.” I opened the front door and saw our neighbors across the street standing on their front porch looking over at me. I waved and then closed the door and backed away. Putting my hand up to my mouth I looked over at Alex. “Do you think they saw me waving my arms around like a crazy person?”

Alex stood there shaking his head. “Let’s just assume the answer is yes.”

“Great.” I sighed. “Now the neighbors think I’m crazy.”

Alex didn’t say anything.

“Isn’t this where you’re suppose to be telling me that’s not true?” I asked.

Alex didn’t answer me but opened the back door. “You go out first and I’ll meet you at the corner in a few minutes.”

I started to laugh. “Thanks for making me feel better.” I said as I walked by him and swatted his arm with my hand.

“Anytime.” He said as he walked out with me and closed the door behind him. “Besides I’m pretty sure they already know you’re a little strange. I mean we’ve all seen you talking to the birds and chipmunks in the back yard.”

“Hey!” I said laughing as I swatted him again. “That’s not fair!”

“But it’s true.” He reminded me.

I sighed as I looked around the corner of the house to see if the neighbors were still outside. “The coast is clear.” I announced before we started our walk.

MAGIC PURSE

My husband Steven and our son Alex and I were having lunch with some friends at a local restaurant.

As the server handed us our menus I reached in my purse to get my reading glasses. As my hand swept the inside of my bag I felt a small container and pulled it out. I saw that it was an empty container of fish food. Surprised, but not really, I shrugged my shoulders placed it on the table and continued my search for my glasses.

Alex looked over at the container of fish food and leaned over to whisper, “Why do you have fish food in your purse?”

I stopped my search for a moment. “It’s empty.” I said as if this were enough of an explanation.

“Okay.” Alex said. “But why?”

“Because we needed more fish food and I wanted to be sure I got the right brand so I brought the empty container with me when I went to the pet store.”

Alex scooped up the empty container and looked over at our friends to see if they had noticed. “We got him his food three weeks ago.” He whispered before he dropped it back in my purse.

“Hey!” I whispered back, my hand still in my purse. “I’m trying to find my glasses! Quit throwing stuff back in!” I took the fish food container back out but placed it in my lap along with several balled up receipts, my checkbook, and some gift cards. “Oh, come on!” I said under my breath. “They’ve got to be in here.” I pulled out a small bottle of hand sanitizer, looked over at Alex and smiled as I put it on the table. “We’ll be using this in a minute.”

Alex just shook his head as he picked up his menu and leaned closer to me. “Do you want me to read you your choices?”

I stubbornly shook my head. “I know they’re in here.”

Steven looked over at the pile of things in my lap. “What are you doing?” He asked.

“I’m looking for my reading glasses.” I pulled out my sunglasses. “Darn it. I thought I had them this time!” I stuck them in my lap.

“Maybe you should clean that out when you get home.” Steven suggested.

I shook my head. “I like to think that it’s more like Mary Poppins’ carpetbag. I might not be sure what I’m going to find in here but I’m pretty sure I’ll be needing it.” I reached in the side pocket and felt another pair of glasses. “Here they are!” I put them on the table, took everything from my lap and dumped it back in my purse.

“Mary Poppins’ carpetbag.” Steven repeated as he shook his head and laughed.

“I’d watch out if I were you.” I warned. “I just might have my own measuring tape in here.”

“So you’re saying it would measure you at practically perfect in every way?” He asked.

I shrugged my shoulders. “Well, that’s a given.” I reminded him as I raised my eyebrows and looked over at him. “I’d be more worried about what it would say about you.” Alex was scanning his menu but shaking his head as he listened to Steven’s and my conversation.

Putting on my readers I picked up my menu and began checking out my choices. “I’m having a hard time deciding. Everything on the menu sound good.” I looked across the table at our friends who had graciously pretended they hadn’t overheard our whole conversation. “Have you decided what you’re going to have?”